Thursday, August 02, 2012

President Correa: “Assange is the world emblem of Free Speech”

In a huge rally in Santa Elena, gathering among the public
Assange supporters demanding asylum for the WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, Ecuador's President Rafael Correa
addressed the nation on vital issues, among them on Freedom of Speech

Pro-asylum demonstrators during the meeting of President Correa with the
people assembled in the

Stadium 'Alberto Spencer', in Santa Elena, to listen in vivo his
weekly message to the Nation

“Never before have humans rights in Ecuador being more
respected as they have been under the Revolucion
Ciudadana. That is why Assange has chosen Ecuador as a country for asylum: The World’s emblem of Freedom of Speech asks asylum in Ecuador, precisely
Ecuador, not more not less” Rafel Correa

The
Presidential message of genuine democratic Ecuador echoes proudly in the
columns of Professors blogg. Word by
word, the statements of Rafael Correa made on his last appearances to the
Ecuadorian public, were also a strong rebuttal to the anti-Assange campaign
maintained by the mainstream media at both sides of the Atlantic –at the
service of their corporative alliance with global political/military power. They are
also a strong denounce, at a highest level of governing, of the absolute
disregard for truth in notorious MSM articles on the issue of the Sweden’s accusations and the political
context behind, and the ad-hominem smear against Assange as a person.

By Marcello Ferrada de Noli

In his
recent address from Santa Elena to the citizens of Ecuador (Enlace Ciudadano 281), President Rafael Correa
made assertive declarations about the freedom of speech and press liberties in
Ecuador. His statements were firmly clear, and in the context unambiguously referred to the pretexted Ecuadorian “press
liberties” issue agitated by USA governmental agencies and the lackey press in
Europe, such as the Swedish mainstream media. Correa
statements on that point can be summarized as follow:

Social
protest (any forms of public criticism, including demonstrations or full
exercise of freedom of speech) is permitted and welcome in Ecuador. What should
not be permitted are the singular crimes that eventually it has been committed in
using those civil liberties.He
referred, for instance, to vandalism exercised against private property from
the part of some street demonstrators.

But he
was referring also about vandalism on the integrity of persons. As we have
reported previously in Professors blog, the intermezzos of the Correa
government with certain mainstream media oligarchs in Ecuador have dealt not
about issues of "press liberties" or "journalism rights" (as informed for instance
in Sweden), but concretely on defamation-crimes which fall under the country’s
Penal legislation –as in all the countries with democratic rule including the
USA and Sweden.

- Public
criticism or protest in Ecuador is not only permitted; is legal, welcomed, and it is protected, said Correa. And added:

“Never
before have humans rights in Ecuador being more respected as they have been
under the Revolucion Ciudadana. That
is why Assange has chosen Ecuador as a country for asylum: The World’s emblem
of Freedom of Speech asks asylum in Ecuador, precisely Ecuador, not more not
less”

Folkloric presentation during the meeting of
President Correa with the people assembled in the Stadium Alberto Spencer, in Santa Elena, to listen in vivo his
weekly message to the Nation. Photo: Miguel Angel Romero /Presidency of Ecuador

Further,
referring to libellous expressions recently published in the version on-line of
El Comercio, Correa declared,“I do not
call that Freedom of Expression, I call that absence of ethics . . .and an
expression of hatred from the part of certain merchants and (their) sick
journalists. In the name of Freedom of Expression I would never publish injurious,
slanderous expressions that affects the dignity of the individuals.

The
Presidential message of genuine democratic Ecuador echoes proudly in the
columns of Professors blogg. Word by
word, the statements of Rafael Correa made on his last appearances to the
Ecuadorian public, were also a strong rebuttal to the anti-Assange campaignmaintained by the mainstream media at both sides of the Atlantic –at the
service of their corporative alliance with global political/military power. They are
also a strong denounce, at a highest level of governing, of the absolute
disregard for truth in notorious MSM articles on the issue of the Sweden’s accusations and the political
context behind, and the ad-hominem smear against Assange as a person.

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